Sam Crignano, president of Cityzen, announced last month that the company had purchased the Clarion Hotel Selby at 592 Sherbourne Street (next to Tridel's James Cooper Mansion), and that they were consulting Chicago-based architectural firm BKL for a new and innovative design that would break from the Toronto norm. Last night a source sent us renderings of an undisclosed "Toronto Residential Tower" that rises behind the unmistakeable Clarion Hotel Selby, and we're sharing them with you today.

Southeast corner of new development by Cityzen

Detail of base and heritage structure

Cityzen has yet to officially release renderings or project information, however these images reveal quite alot about the development and what they are proposing to construct. The existing historic mansion that has served as a hotel since 1915 was in fact built in 1882 as a private home for the Gooderham family, and was for a time home to the all-girls private school Branksome Hall, as well as Ernest Hemingway during his Toronto years in the 1920s.

Southeast corner of new development by Cityzen

The heritage structure has been moved closer to the street (similar to how the James Cooper Mansion was shifted eastwards), clearing room in the rear for the tower to rise. Atop a 3-storey base is a 47-storey tower featuring a dramatic cut-out of its southeast corner between the ground and the 30th floor. The square grid pattern on the north encloses balconies for what we believe could be residential units, while the rectangular windows on the south could be for a hotel component, although that is purely speculation as no information was included with the renderings and we don't have confirmation if the Clarion will continue to occupy any portion of the building.

northeast corner of new development by Cityzen

We've yet to receive any official confirmation from Cityzen or Clarion, however the inclusion of the easily recognizable mansion in the renderings leaves no doubt in our minds that this is the initial design for the future development. We've created a dataBase page with the renderings below that includes a link to the associated project thread. We're excited to see how this project will carry through and will keep you updated with all the latest news as it's released.